The broad objective of this research is to study the development of both semantic organization and visual organization. The primary approach is through studies of memory. Recall and recognition of a variety of complex verbal and visual materials are used to investigate children's modes of organizing their semantic and visual memory systems. In the area of semantic memory, the work focuses on analyses of the mental structures (schemata) which organize the encoding and retention of complex verbal materials. We have developed a model of the structure of simple stories in the form of a story grammar which we use to analyze what children remember and forget from stories and the distortions and changes in memory that occur over time. In studying visual memory, the reseach focuses on the structure of scene schemata which govern the types of information encoded and retained from complex visual stimuli such as pictures of scenes. The research also explores the extent to which visual information is automatically processed, the development of categorical organization, and similarities and differences in memory for information from the visual and verbal modes. The age range to be studied extends from preschool to adulthood, with primary emphasis on the way in which people of all ages impose organization and structure on both verbal and visual input.